


The Boy in the Blue Sweater

by Stay_Frosty



Series: Peter and Harley [2]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Child Neglect, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Parent Tony Stark, Precious Peter Parker, Protective Peter Parker, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark is Good With Kids
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-21
Updated: 2019-08-27
Packaged: 2020-03-09 06:35:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,460
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18911536
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stay_Frosty/pseuds/Stay_Frosty
Summary: In 2007, Harley's dad left to get scratch cards and never came back. Since then, his mother turned to alcohol to cope and he was left to take care of his sister, Abbie by himself.In 2013, he met Tony Stark, who finally made Harley feel like he didn't have to carry the weight of the world on his own. He and Pepper were the closest things to parents he'd ever had.2016, Tony introduced Harley to his new intern, Peter Parker, who had the most wonderful smile and the prettiest eyes he had ever seen. Harley soon realised he would do anything for him, and had never felt more loved when he realised the feeling was mutual.





	1. one

**Author's Note:**

> Just a little Harley/Peter thing I've been working on to avoid exam prep :) enjoy the fluff in this chapter and the next few because I'm planning a n g s t. I'll add more tags when I update and they're necessary.

In 2007, Harley's dad left to get scratch cards and never came back. It'd been hard on him, being only five years old and taking on the role of caring for his mom and little sister. Money wasn't good and neither was his mother's mental health. Oftentimes, Harley would retreat to the garage and build things to distract him from reality. He was fine with taking care of his family, he had to be, but  it was a lot for a boy of his age to take on. He remembered clearly hearing his mother cry herself to sleep on the rare times she was actually home. He remembered having no idea what to say to Abbie when she asked him relentlessly when their dad was coming home. It was hard enough to accept everything going on himself, let alone comfort her over it. By the time Harley hit the age of 10, he was more mature than most 16 year olds, and he hated it. He'd had his childhood ripped from him and he didn't even have the time to be bitter about it.

 

***

 

In 2013, Harley met Tony Stark. He found the mechanic in his own garage one day near Christmas time. Although a the time Stark wouldn't admit it, the two had bonded and become close in the short time they knew each other. And while he would never admitted, Harley thought it was nice to have someone act like a father to him, even if it wasn't for long. Eventually however, like his real dad, Tony had to leave. He understood, really he did. Tony had a whole life to go back to: a job, a girlfriend, hell he was _Iron Man,_ of course he couldn't stay in Tennessee forever. It didn't make Harley any less sad to see him go though, which is why he was glad the mechanic had left a number for him to call if he ever needed him. For the first time in his life, Harley felt like he could be the child that he really was. He'd had a taste of being able to rely on someone instead of holding the weight of the world on his own shoulders, and he didn't want to give it up. None the less, he refused to bother Tony Stark if he didn't have a good reason.

 

Yet Harley didn't know how much he had helped Tony. When the two had met, he was in a very dark place and somehow the kid managed to pull him out of it. Well sort of, of course he still struggled but Harley really did help him. He wanted nothing more than to look after and protect Harley, since it seemed like no one else ever had, but he was too proud and too strong to admit to Tony that he was struggling, and played it off like it was nothing. Though Tony wanted to believe him, deep down he knew the kid was lying, so would call him up every now and then to check on him.

 

Whenever Tony did call, or even visited, Harley would insist that everything was perfectly fine, even though his home life was getting progressively worse. His mother spent the scarce amount of money that they had on alcohol to cope with the pain of her husband leaving all those years ago. She was in no fit state to take care of Abbie properly (or Harley, since he was only 13 years old and really still needed his mother) so he took on that role also. Eventually, money became so much of a problem that Harley searched around for any job that he could possibly get, which included paper rounds on week days. The income wasn't fantastic, but it was better than nothing and it was enough to feed Abbie, even if he went to bed hungry more often than not.

 

***

 

On one particular visit, Tony refused to hear Harley's lies about how he was coping . He was 15 now, and still kept up his paper round but now worked at a bar on weekends. It was rough, and the kid looked like he hadn't slept properly in weeks. Even worse, he looked like he hadn't eaten a full meal in days. "Harls" Tony said softly, brushing the boy's messy blonde hair out of his face. Unwillingly, Harley leaned into his touch. But who could blame him for enjoying Stark's affections? "please talk to me, and don't bullshit me. I'm a genius, remember? You can't lie to me"

 

Harley broke down for the first time in years that day. Gripping helpless onto Tony while he sobbed into his shirt, finally allowing his emotions to show. He admitted that he was struggling to cope with two jobs, a school life, raising his sister and making sure his alcoholic mother didn't kill herself with the booze. He admitted that he was _scared,_ so damn scared that he would wake up one day and she wouldn't, and that he would have to once again explain to Abbie why one of their parents wasn't coming back.  Tony sat with him, in the garage like they did when he was 11, and held the boy close to him until his sobs settled down into whimpers. When he realised how much of his life he had shared, he begged Tony not to tell anyone. Not wanting to break the boy's trust in him, Tony reluctantly agreed.

 

He offered to bring Harley and his sister to the Stark tower for a little while (or forever if Tony had his way), but Harley insisted that he needed to stay to take care of his mom. What if he left and something happened to her? What if she overdosed and he wasn't there to stop it? Harley would never forgive himself if anything like that happened. Still, once a week the pair would go over to the tower for a meal which Pepper would kindly prepare for them. Miss Potts would remind him how a mother could be, how a mother _should be_ with her children. Harley would wolf down his food and sheepishly accept seconds. It broke Tony's heart to know that these were probably the only decent meals Harley would eat. He wanted to help so badly, but there's only so much he could do when the boy refused money and wouldn't stay over at the tower incase his mom needed him.

 

***

 

In 2016, Harley met someone he trusted other than Tony. It was one time when he and Abbie were over for dinner, a boy around his age exited the lab with Tony. he was a little shorter than Harley, and he wore a blue sweater with a shirt underneath. His brown curls were messy from their work and fell just above soft, chocolate eyes. "o-oh, sorry Mr Stark, I didn't realise you had company" the boy stuttered. _Jesus he's adorable_ Harley found himself thinking _. No_ he mentally scolded himself, _this is not the time for your pathetic gay panic._

 

"It's fine, Pete. Why don't you stay for dinner? I can call May if you want?" Tony offered. _Shit_ Harley thought. He wasn't ready to have a functional conversation with this boy, who by the way, was the cutest person he'd ever seen. While he wanted to get to know whoever 'Pete' was, another part of him hopes the boy had a reason to leave. However, he smiled ( _Jesus fucking Christ he has a pretty smile. Get it together Keener)_ and gratefully accepted Tony's offer.

 

The boy seemed timid, shy even, like he was really nervous to be in a stranger's presence. Harley wasn't going to judge that, for all he was confident on the outside he was constantly second guessing himself. Nit everyone was as good at hiding it as he was. Yet feigning confidence made him feel so powerful, like he could do anything if he just _pretended_ he was someone else. So he smiled brightly at the boy in the blue sweater and put his hand out for him to shake. "I'm Harley" he told him. The boy smiled, a noticeable blush forming on his cheeks, and gently shook Harley's hand.

 

"I'm Parker- i mean Peter. I-I'm" he fumbled over his words and muttered something to himself in frustration. Finally he managed to spit out "I'm Peter Parker"

 

Harley swore he had never heard anything more adorable in his whole life. Peter was absolutely precious, and the way he blushed and stuttered with nerves warmed his heart. He decided that was his new favourite thing. So Harley made a mental note to try and make Peter blush as much as he possibly could before the night was over. Maybe he could even get his number out of it; it would be such a shame to never see him again.

 

"Nice to meet you, Peter Parker" Harley said, voice low and calm. When no one else was watching he sent Peter a wink, making the boy turn a deep shade of crimson. Harley smiled to himself seeing the  blush that remained on Peter's cheeks, even when he looked away and tried to control it. He really was something else.

 

***

 

Harley _did_ get Peter's number that night, but it wasn't through his own flirting. Tony had talked endlessly about how much the two boys would have in common, and that if they worked together on a project they would probably invent something that would change the world. With Peter's brain and Harley's skill _anything was possible._ He honestly talked about them like a proud dad. So, he suggested that they exchanged phone numbers and kept in contact with one another so that they could work together in the lab.

 

He also figured it would do Harley the world of good to make a friend, and he trusted Peter with Harley's feelings more than anyone else. Not that he thought Harley was as fragile as a porcelain doll, he wasn't and he wasn't going to treat him that way. There was no doubt in Tony's mind that Harley was one of the strongest people he had ever met, but no one could deny that he put far too much on his plate. maybe knowing someone like Peter could encourage him to spend less time worrying about Abbie and his mom and everything else wrong in his life, and a little more time just being a boy his age.

 

Tony was right. While at first he was a little worried that his boys wouldn't get in with each other, now there was no doubt what's so ever that the two were friends. Peter had started to join their weekly routine of dinner at the Stark tower with Harley and Abbie, and afterwards they would disappear down to the lab and work together for hours until Harley would sheepishly check his watch and excuse himself. It broke Tony's heart, but he wasn't going to stop him. If Harley wasn't comfortable leaving his mother for more than a couple of hours then there was no way Tony was going to tell him that was wrong, he would just be there for the kid as much as he could be.

 

So, while Harley struggled to see Peter outside of those couple of hours, the boys texted as much as possible. It was mental, because even though Harley couldn't see Peter's face over the phone, he could just _tell_ that he was blushing and would be fumbling over his words if they were in person. He decided it was still just as adorable as it was in real life.

 

***

 

Eventually, their conversations went past physics and engineering, and after a few weeks their time together was spent in places other than the lab or the dinner table. The time that Harley spent at the tower increased slightly as well, because he couldn't seem to force himself away from Peter. They would sit on the roof, talking and talking about everything and nothing. Peter talked to Harley about losing his parents and his uncle, and Harley told Peter about his dad leaving and even mentioned briefly his mother who he was so worried about.

 

One night, when Harley had been so sleep deprived from working all the time, and black bags began to form around his eyes, Peter stood in front of him asked him if he was okay. Simple question, except not really, because Peter had asked him ever so sweetly and looked up at him with such worried eyes that Harley just couldn't lie to him. "it's kinda hard" he admitted to the doe eyed boy in front of him. "I just want Abbie to have a normal childhood; she doesn't deserve to watch her mother destroy herself, Y'know?"

 

Peter nodded at him and looked into Harley's eyes with his own sad, concerned eyes. "neither do you" he replied timidly, so quiet that Harley almost didn't hear him. Maybe Peter was right, he was about most things. Most teenagers didn't have to have several jobs to be able to provide for their families, they wouldn't have to skip meals so that their siblings wouldn't have to, they certainly wouldn't have to prioritise looking after their alcoholic mother over school and friends. However Harley had lived like this since he was 13 years old and didn't know any other way. He couldn't imagine his life being any different. He wasn't sure how to reply to Peter, but luckily he didn't have to. "you- you can tell me to mind my own business" Peter began. "but- are you eating properly?"

 

The question caught Harley off guard and once again he didn't know what to say.  It was a rare thing, Harley being lost for words. Usually he was confident, sarcastic and witty, but in the presence of Peter Parker, he found himself speechless more often than not. Yet he didn't find his questions and concerns nosy or irritating, in fact he appreciated that Peter cared enough to ask. Still, he didn't want to worry him, so after a few seconds of silence Harley smiled and nodded. "course, man"

 

Unsure and definitely unconvinced, Peter nodded slowly and didn't push the subject further. He would another time, but not right now. Not if Harley wasn't ready to open up to him about it. "what about sleep?" Peter asked softly.

 

Harley knitted his brows together, confused. "huh?"

 

Peter looked up at him with those worry-filled baby browns again. "you just seem, I don't know, dazed. Are you getting enough sleep?"

 

Harley chuckled despite the dark subject matter, Peter was simply adorable, so much so he could ignore how uncomfortable he was with the questions being asked. "jeez Petey, I'm fine, yeah? Get off my dick" he said. There was no venom or frustration behind his words, just light hearted banter even though the actual conversation was anything _but_ light hearted. Once again Peter turned a shade of red and ducked his head down every so slightly. "R-right. Sorry" he stumbled.

 

"don't worry about it" Harley responded, suddenly aware of the little distance between their two bodies. The wind swept through Peter's brown curls as the younger boy continued to look up at him. Although they had known each other for less than a month, Harley knew that he would do anything for Peter. It was like the love and respect he had for Abbie, except a little different. Abbie was his little sister, he had _raised_ her; it was a given he would do anything for her. Peter though? Not only did he care for Peter, and would do anything to make him happy, he _knew_ the feeling was mutual. The only other person who had cared about him like this was Tony. Not even his own parents had shown Harley the same level or care and affection that Peter had in the last few weeks.

 

"Peter?" he said, suddenly nervous.

 

"yeah?" Peter replied, the same level of nerves obvious in his tone.

 

"thank you" Harley breathed, taking a step closer to the boy despite the butterflies he felt in his stomach and the hammering of his heart. "thank you for caring"

 


	2. two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> malnutrition has taken its toll on Harley, and Abbie can't understand why he keeps making them go back home.

Harley's home life became exponentially worse as time went by. Abbie was acting up, the stress of worrying about their mother and the on going sadness over their father effecting her just as much as it was him. She would yell at Harley over just about everything, whether it was that he forgot to buy milk or whether it was something more serious like their mother's health. It was like she somehow blamed him for the way she was, like he wasn't trying so hard to keep the family together.

Harley knew it was just her way of dealing with things, but he couldn't say it didn't sting whenever she would yell and complain at everything little thing he did wrong, especially when everything he did in his life was for her benefit. It was always for her, and Harley didn't have a problem with that. He would move mountains for his sister, crawl on broken glass if it meant she was safe. He wished she saw it that way.

Peter had tried several times to meet up with Harley outside of those weekly slots at dinner, and it was becoming near impossible to prevent Peter from seeing how things really  were for Harley without the boy thinking he was just avoiding him. Harley would explain everything to him eventually, but not over a phone call and certainly not through a text. He was thankful that Tony had bought him a phone for Christmas one year as a gift, because it meant that he was able to keep in contact with this literal angel. That was one thing he didn't feel awful about Stark giving him.

Peter had understood each time Harley made an excuse not to see him, but it was impossible not to notice the sadness in his voice every time Harley declined plans. The last thing Harley wanted was for the younger bot to think that he didn't want to see him, because that couldn't be further from the truth, he just really did not have time.

Tony had offered more than once to pay the bills or have Happy bring meals down to their house, but Harley was somewhere between too proud and too embarrassed to accept. It was fine, they could cope. His job at the bar  pretty much covered bills and his mother's medication, and his paper round was enough to give Abbie and his mother three meals a day. So what if he just lived off snacks and left overs? It was fine. he was fine.  
   
Until he wasn't, which inconveniently for him was not only in front of Tony, but in front of Peter too. He was just thankful that Abbie was preoccupied helping Pepper with Dinner when his lack of nutrients finally took its toll and his legs buckled beneath him. They were in the lab when it happened, all of a sudden he caught a glimpse of Peter's worried eyes and then lost his balance. Tony caught him, and held the dazed boy for a few seconds before leading him over to the sofa that he was suddenly thankful he decided to put into the lab.

"Pete" Tony breathed, concern obvious in his voice. Harley had never collapsed like this in all the years he had known the kid, so while he acted calm he was scared as hell. "Do me a favour and go grab me some water, Yeah? There's chocolate in one of the kitchen cupboards, Pep'll show you which"

The bewildered boy nodded quickly before muttering "Yeah- yeah sure thing, Mr Stark" and scrambling off out of the lab. It took Harley a few seconds to pull round, but thankfully it wasn't long enough to give Stark heart failure or something.

"Hey Harls" Tony said softly, brushing some hair out of the younger boy's sweat soaked face. "You with me buddy?" Harley nodded, still unsure of what the hell even happened. "Sorry Tony" he choked out. He still felt dizzy and sick, which was absolutely no surprise all things considered. "Don't be sorry kid" Tony said softly, kneeling in front of the sofa Harley slumped in. Stark lightly graced his thumb over the kid's knuckles for a few moments until Peter frantically came rushing back into the lab with a drink and some chocolate.

"Thanks Petey" Harley mumbled, barely coherent. He gratefully accepted the water and took a small sip, before digging into the chocolate. It was ridiculous how much he missed that stuff. Every now and then he would get a tip and buy Abbie something sweet as a treat but never anything for himself. Aware that as soon as he was with it enough to answer questions, he would be expected to, he stayed quiet and sipped his water for as long as he could without being  fussed over.

Not that he minded Peter or Tony fussing over him, it was nice to feel cared about, but he really didn't want them to worry about him. This gave Tony all the more excuse to try and help more, and Peter all the more reason to look up at him with sad, concerned eyes. As cute as they were, he really wanted to avoid scaring Peter.

"Abbie okay?" Harley asked as soon as his head didn't feel like it was full of cotton. Finally he was starting to process his surroundings and whereabouts. Peter moved and took a seat next to him and lay a gentle hand on his shoulder. Harley felt the urge to pull him closer to him and hold hm for a while, and if it weren't for how weak he felt he actually might have.

"Abbie's fine" Peter assured him. "she's in the living room watching some show"

Sighing with relief, Harley nodded. It was bad enough Peter and Tony had known about that little episode, he didn't need Abbie knowing her brother was weak too. He needed to be there for her. "I'll be alright in a sec, let's go up for dinner" he croaked, trying to stand up when Peter's grip became tighter.

"give yourself a few minute Harls, you'll make yourself dizzy" Peter warned, moving closer to Harley incase he tried to stand up again. And Harley wanted to argue, insist he was fine, really he did. However deep down he knew that Peter was right; he already felt dizzy enough without forcing himself to move when his body clearly couldn't cope with it.

Tony noticed how Peter was just itching to wrap his arms around Harley's thin frame, and momentarily wondered what was stopping him. Then he remembered how damn socially awkward Parker was and realised it was probably his presence that was preventing him. So, he 'naturally' stood up and stretched, hamming up his actions a lot for someone who wanted to look at subtle as possible, Well played Tony, and announced that he was going to help Pepper with dinner.

Once the boys were left in silence, Harley sighed and slumped down, preparing himself for the truck load of questions Peter probably wanted to ask, but nothing came. Instead, the younger of the two kept his hand firmly on his shoulder and encouraged Harley to loom at him. "do you wanna talk about it?" he asked quietly.

"huh?" Harley asked, moving his body to face Peter's better. "what are you talking about?"

Peter shrugged and looked at him with those goddamn eyes again. Those eyes that made Harley feel more loved than he ever had been in his whole life, but at the same time made him feel more guilty than he had ever felt as well. The amount that Peter cared about Harley was clear, and he'd be lying if he said it didn't make his heart warm and his stomach do flips. Yet it made him feel so awful for making the boy as worried as he was.

God he made Harley feel so confused and unsure about everything in the best possible way and he couldn't even begun to describe it. It's like Peter made him want to better himself, even if it was just so that he'd never have to make him feel bad again.

"do you want to talk about whatever caused this? It wasn't just nothing, i saw the look on Mr Stark's face: this hasn't happened before"

Funnily enough, Harley chuckled. He seemed to have a bad habit of doing that whenever Pete was expressing his concern. "brains and beauty huh? You're the full package Parker" he commented, making Peter blush wildly. The crimson shade of his cheeks spread to his ears and down his neck and Jesus Harley wanted to kiss him so badly. The way he tried to hide his face by looking down and letting his hair fall in front of his face made Harley weak at the knees. He really shouldn't think about standing up any time soon.

"come on. Harley" Peter mumbled, still hiding his face. "I'm worried about you, please tell me what's going on"

Suddenly Harley was no longer in the mood to tease Peter and turn his concerns into a light hearted joke. Maybe it was the sadness that laced his voice, or the pure genuine worry that oozed from his words, either way Harley felt like he owed it to Peter to at least explain himself.

"Money's not brilliant at the minute" he sheepishly admitted. This really was not a conversation was he wanted to, nor was he ready to have, but it was about time he had got it off his chest. "I mean, we have money, but once the bills are covered and I've fed Abbie there's- whoa" he was interrupted by Peter throwing his arms around his neck and pulling him into a hug. After the initial shock of being practically pounced wore off, Harley relaxed into Peter's embrace and held him closer.

"you aren't eating then?" he asked, so much sadness in his voice. He didn't sound angry or hurt that Harley had lied to him, just pure sorrow. It almost made Harley feel remorseful for even being poor in the first place. Ridiculous right?

"I just didn't want you to worry Pete" he answered the unasked question that hovered within their conversation: why didn't you tell me?

Saying nothing, Peter continued to cling to Harley like he was his lifeline, and Harley let him. He couldn't describe the butterflies he felt looking down at the boy in his arms, but he knew that if he let go it would be like he couldn't breathe. Now that he had Peter in his life, being without him would be like being without oxygen. He imagined it would be like how a drug addict felt without their fix, or how an inebriate felt without alcohol. Slowly, he was starting to understand his mother more and more. Shit, his mother.

Peter felt Harley tense and pulled back slightly to look at him. "Sorry" Peter said. "did I cross a line?" and despite everything Harley smiled at him. He couldn't help it; it was unavoidable, Peter just had that effect on him. Feeling suddenly confident, Harley brushed some hair from the top of Peter's forehead out of his face and let his thumb trail across his cheek.

"No Petey, it's okay. You haven't crossed any lines, you've been amazing" Harley told him in a low voice, barely above a whisper. It was becoming more and more obvious that Peter needed a lot of reassurance that he was saying and doing the right thing, and Harley was more than happy to supply that as long as it meant he felt comfortable. Anxiety, surprisingly, isn't something Harley had personally experienced, but he knew from Tony that telling him to chill out and not to worry about it wouldn't actually work. So, if Peter needed regular verbal reassuring that he wasn't doing anything wrong, then that's what Harley would do.

"let's go get dinner, yeah? I'm sure Tony and Pepper are wondering where we are" Harley suggested softly. Peter nodded but then looked at him once again with those sad baby browns. "are you sure you're able to walk?" he asked. Harley smiled. "i guess there's only one way to find out"

Harley wobbled on his feet, dizziness swirling through his head but after a few moments he had managed to steady himself, Peter's hand on his arm grounding him slightly. He guided Harley out of the lab and helped him stumble into the elevator when he asked once again "are sure you're okay?"

"m'fine Petey pie" Harley mumbled, feeling a little more dazed than he would like to admit. When the lift stopped and the doors opened, Peter grabbed Harley's arm again and patiently moved at his speed. Besides the feeling of electricity down his spine and the swirl of nerves in his stomach (both a result of Peter Parker innocently holding onto him), all Harley could think about was how hungry he was. The growling of his stomach proved his point.

"hey boys" Pepper greeted kindly when she saw them exiting the elevator. "Hurry along, dinner's getting cold"

Harley's eyes widened at the mention of dinner and he not so subtly picked up the pace, Peter changing his speed to match his.

The two sat down besides each other at the table and wordlessly began to dig into their meal. "how are you feeling, sweetheart?" Pepper asked Harley, who was already half way through his dinner after only a few minutes. While Peter was glad he was finally eating something, it worried him slightly how long Harley must have gone without food to be this hungry.

"M'good" Harley replied with his mouth full, but no one was going to judge. "thanks pep"

When they were all finished eating, Abbie was about to start showing Pepper something on the TV until Harley saw the time. "actually kiddo, it's getting late. We really gotta be heading back" he told the girl. She scowled at him in return, crossing her arms over her chest and turning her back on him. "no" she spat simply. Harley sighed. "come on Abbie, please don't do this hear. You know we need to go" she turned to face him again and glared even harder, keeping her arms firmly in place.

"you always ruin everything!" she yelled, tears brimming in her eyes. He didn't blame her, she was far too young to understand their mother's condition and simply saw this as Harley trying to take her away from a warm house with a TV and an unlimited supply of food. Not to mention warm, loving parent like figures. Truth be told he didn't ever want to leave either, but he couldn't leave his mom. Not like his dad did; he refused to be anything like him.

"Abbie-" he tried again, sounding defeated. "please kiddo, mom'll be getting worried"

Abbie scoffed and rolled her eyes. Harley dreaded her teen years, she had enough attitude at 12. "stop pretending she cares!" she snapped, startling Harley. "she doesn't Harley, ever since dad left she hasn't give a damn about us or what happens to us- don't act like when we get home she'll be waiting with cocoa to ask us about our day and wish us goodnight when we both know she'll have already drank anything she could get her hands on!"

During her outburst, the tears that had previously been building up had started to fall, and she angrily scrubbed them away with the back of her jumper. "why do you keep making us go back to her when we have everything we need right here?" she sniffled.

Deep down Harley knew she was right. It wasn't fair for him to keep ripping her away from all this luxury just because he was scared of what their mother would do. Abbie was smart, mature for her age yet still too young to understand why their mom behaved the way she did. "because she's our mom, she needs us" he tried to explain softly. Abbie's face didn't change.

"oh yeah? And what about when we need her? Where is she then, Harley?" she yelled, crying completely now. It broke Harley's heart to see his sister upset like this, especially when he knew that she was right. He was trying to hard to stop his own tears from falling while trying to comfort her. He knelt down in front of the girl and softly grabbed her hands.

"you're right" he said as calmly as he could. What his sister really did not need to see was him have a breakdown now. He was good at suppressing them most of the time, he just needed to focus really hard right now. "you're right" he repeated, more to stall time to give him chance to think about what he's saying. "you stay here for a while, if that's okay with Tony and Pepper" he said, looking up to Stark, who looked at Harley with a huge amount of sympathy and nodded. Harley smiled despite his glossy eyes and brought his thumb up to Abbie's cheek to wipe her own tears. "I can't keep dragging you away from this, it's not fair"

Abbie sniffled and held onto her brother. "what about you?" she whimpered. "aren't you staying?"

This time Harley did let himself cry while he curled a strand of hair behind his little sister's ear. "No kiddo" he told her sorrowfully. "I'm sorry, I still gotta take care of mom, but I'll visit as much as I can yeah?". She nodded, wiping her eyes. "and you can call me if you need me" he told her, his own voice cracking now as he spoke. She nodded again and wrapped her small, thin arms around his neck. He clung to her small frame for a few seconds before kissing her on the cheek.

"I love you, kid" he told her. "be good for Tony and Pepper, yeah?"

"I will" she mumbled. "I love you too, Harls"

When they pulled away, Pepper lay a soft hand on Abbie's shoulder and the girl snuggled into her side. Tony walked with Harley over to the elevator, followed by Peter. The three stepped in and Harley waved to Abbie before the doors closed. They rode down to the first floor in silence apart from Harley's occasional sniffle that he was trying to keep quiet, until Peter gently grabbed his hand and he felt like he could breathe again.

The doors opened and the three stepped out, Happy waiting to take Harley and Peter home. Usually, if it weren't too late, Peter would just web it back to his apartment, but he was yet to tell Harley about the whole 'Spiderman' thing so accepted the ride offer. "hey kid" Tony said before the boys left. "I'm always here if you need anything"

Harley offered him a half smile and nodded. "thanks Tony" he replied before hugging him. Physical affection wasn't something they'd do often, only if one of them was really struggling, but this felt right. After all, Tony had just agreed to let his sister live with him so that she wouldn't have to suffer; he'd done him a huge favour. "please take care of her Tony" he begged, almost pathetically but he was the only one who saw it that way.

"of course kiddo. You'll still come for dinner next week right?" the older man asked, looking unsure.

"wouldn't miss it"

He and Peter left the building a few moments later and stood outside in the cold for a little before calling Happy. "I'm really proud of you, Harls" Peter broke the comfortable silence. "that must've been hard." Harley noticed him shiver at a small gust of wind and smirked. "you cold, Petey?" he teased. Peter allowed a grin to form on his face before sheepishly moving a little closer to him. "a little" he admitted. Harley wrapped an arm around Peter's shoulders and pulled the boy closer to him. Peter leaned into his side.

"you're right, Pete" he sighed. "that's the hardest thing I've ever done but- taking her back there would just be selfish. I mean, Tony and Pepper have been more like parents to us than our own ever were, why shouldn't she stay here?"

"you're far from selfish, Harley" Peter said softly. "you've given up everything for your family, don't tell me I'm wrong. I'm not an idiot"

Harley chuckled. "I know you aren't"

"hey Harley?" Peter's soft voice filled his ears again. He smiled.

"yeah Pete?"

Peter turned to face him properly and wrapped his arms around Harley's waist, hugging him closer. "everything'll be okay" the boy assured, so confidently that it was hard not to believe him. "I promise"

 

 

 


	3. three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this took a few days longer than I expected, but it's longer than usual so I hope that makes up for it :)

 The ride back home was painfully long. Harley was able to chat to Happy quite easily, so it wasn't awkward or uncomfortable, but the lack of Abbie's rambling about everything and nothing made everything seem wrong. What had he done? In his head it was what was best for her, and maybe it was right but he couldn't shake the feeling that he should have fought harder for her to come home.

He loved her, more than anything else in the world, he had basically raised the girl which is why he felt so terrible for leaving her with Tony- even if it was for only a few nights. Had he failed her as a brother? Was he really doing the right thing. She'd hate him if he changed his mind now, that's for sure. Like him, Abbie was always happy to act like there wasn't any problems at home. She had always acted like their mother wasn't completely alcohol dependent, like Harley didn't work several jobs just to prevent them from being homeless, like their dad didn't leave them before Abbie was even old enough to talk.

For her to have an outburst that bad, in front of an audience, she must have been truly, truly unhappy, because that wasn't like her at all. So shouldn't he have tried to fix the problem rather than giving in to what he thought was right for her? At the end of the day, it wasn't okay for him to just assume Tony and Miss Potts would be fine with her staying. Granted, they had both offered several times in the past, but Abbie wasn't actually their responsibility, she was his.

Should he have been stricter with her? It was wring of her to talk so badly about her mother, especially with two adults listening. Had Tony and Pepper not been so good to them, anything could have happened. They could very easily contact social services and then Abbie could, would, be put into care. In hindsight, Harley realised, he definitely should have been stricter with her. That was always the problem, she had him wrapped around her little finger, which was fine until she put them in a potentially dangerous situation and he didn't do anything to stop it.

He could have lost her, the most important person in the world to him just because he didn't want to see her upset. In a way, he thought, he had already lost her. Lost her to luxury and good parents, warm blankets and a TV. While Harley understood that all of these things were bound to seem more appealing to his sister than 'peanut butter sandwiches again, Harley?' or wearing his hoodies over her pyjamas to bed because the heating bill hadn't been paid for that month, it stung that even after he'd done his best to take care of her, someone else could do it better almost effortlessly.

Now, don't get him wrong, Harley wasn't taking anything away from what Tony and Pepper were doing for Abbie; they loved her to pieces, but so did he. Would bringing her home again be selfish? Was giving her the taste of paradise once a week then dragging her back into their reality cruel? Because at the end of the day, their mom loved her too, even if she wasn't mentally well enough to show it properly. It was wrong for her to be away from her family for so long. He missed her, and that was so stupid because he had only seen her a few hours ago, but he figured he was entitled to that feeling.

He looked down at his phone and noticed a text from Peter on the lock screen. Unlocking his phone, he tried not to pay too much attention to the picture of himself and Abbie that was his wallpaper. He opened the message from peter.

Peter: hey, you okay?

Harley smiled, Peter really was as sweet as sugar. He wasn't sure he had ever met someone so wonderful in his entire life. Peter just had that personality that was difficult not to fall inn love with: he was kind, so caring, always so nervous and shy like a worried bunny rabbit. He wasn't sure what it was that he felt for Parker, but he knew that he felt less alone, less unhappy and more normal. Peter didn't act like Harley was made of glass like other people would if they knew his situation, sure he was concerned about him, but he would never treat him like he was incompetent or a poor little victim. Harley liked that.

Harley: I'm fine, Pete. Honestly. How're you?

Was that the truth? Of course not. But what was the point in worrying Peter when there's nothing he could do to help? Plus, Harley didn't like to complain; there were people in the world who were much worse off than him and he found it wrong to act any differently. Tony had always told him that he's allowed to be hurt, he's allowed to be angry about everything but Harley still couldn't bring himself to be bitter.

Peter: I'm good, it was nice to see you today

Harley didn't respond too quickly because he didn't want to seem like one of those besotted teenage girls that he would see in one of those crappy romantic comedies that Abbie and Pepper liked to watch. More often than not, he, Tony and Peter were able to slink off to the lab when they insisted on putting one on, but sometimes Pepper would demand that they stayed because 'family time is important'

Family, that word felt strange to even say in his head. His family had always just consisted of him, Abbie and their mother. It almost felt like a betrayal to his mom to let Pepper call them a family, but he wasn't going to say that to them, not when it felt so good to hear, not when it made him feel so warm and loved, and definitely not after all the couple had done for them. The last thing in the world he wanted was to seem ungrateful.

Harley: even though I basically passed out on you? Not my smoothest move Parker

Peter had opened the message as soon as he sent it, and replied just moments later

Peter: come on, we both know you only pretend to be that smooth. I bet you're all fluff underneath

Harley chuckled when he read it. Peter knew him so well, which was both flattering and terrifying.

Harley: only for you sugar ;)

He wasn't sure what time he had fallen asleep in the car, but he knew his neck ached from being craned in an awkward position when he'd woken up. "we're here, kid," Happy announced. Harley really couldn't be more thankful for him driving them back every week, and he made a mental note to convince Tony to give Happy a well deserved pay rise.

"thank you, Sir," Harley replied politely before grabbing his phone and exiting the car. When he unlocked his front door and went inside he half expected his mother to be either passed out on the couch or in bed, but she seemed wide awake while she nursed a drink. He wasn't sure what exactly it is, but it probably wasn't water.

"Hey mom," he greeted softly, wandering into the front room and taking a seat beside her. She looked at him fondly for a moment before furrowing her brows.

"where's Abbie?" she asked, visibly concerned. He couldn't help but feel guilty for allowing her to accuse their mom of not caring. She did care, she loved her children, but she struggled to show it properly.

"she's staying with a friend," He explained- it technically wasn't a lie. When she didn't respond her grabbed her hand gently and ran his thumb across her knuckles. "have you eaten yet?" she shook her head gently. "that's okay," he assured, standing up abruptly. "I'll go make you something"

After making sure his mother had eaten and had gone to bed before crashing on the couch, Harley sat on the couch and pulled out his phone. Peter had tried calling him. Ignoring the weird fluttering in his chest when he saw Peter's name on his lock screen, he decided to call him back. It was pretty late but Peter had only called him about 10 minutes ago so it's likely he'd still be awake.  Going out into the garage so his voice wouldn't wake his mom, he waited patiently with his phone against his ear for Peter to pick up: He did almost immediately.

"Hey Pete," Harley greeted when the boy answered the call. He was glad Peter was still up, otherwise he would have had to be awake with his own thoughts and that's really something he wanted to avoid right now. Talking to Peter was always nice, he was super smart so could keep up with the stuff that Harley was interested in and wouldn't bring up anything personal unless he felt like he really had to.

"Hi Harley," Peter replied chipperly. "I didn't wake you did I?"

Harley laughed, not sarcastically or condescendingly, just fondly at the boy. Poor, poor Peter still couldn't see that Harley really loved spending time with him, could he? "you didn't wake me doll, don't worry" he assured and he could have sworn he heard Peter sigh with relief. "i swear one day I'll get it into that pretty little head of yours that you don't have to worry about bothering me Petey."

There was a pause down the line. "w-what do you mean?"

"Nothing bad, Petey. You just seem on edge a lot, like you're always worried about saying or doing the wrong thing. M'just saying you don't have to do that with me, there's nothing in this world you could do that I'd judge you for," Harley told him.

"I'm pretty sure that's not true. What if I kicked a puppy?" Peter countered, making Harley chuckle.

"Peter you basically are a puppy, we both know you'd never do that"

Peter gasped dramatically in feigned offence. "did you just call me a dog?"

"I compared your personality to a cute puppy's that's hardly anything to be offended about," Harley assured with a smile on his face.

"okay, okay maybe a puppy was a bad example. What if I robbed a bank? You'd surely judge me for that!" Peter insisted.

"Petey- no offence but i doubt you would even steal orange juice from your school's cafeteria without feeling guilty for the rest of your life, let alone rob a bank"

"you sound like you're judging me" Peter teased. God Harley loved talking to him, within minutes his entire mood had changed from bad to on cloud 9.

"definitely not judging" Harley said fondly. "you're adorable"

"this will sound weird," Peter began. "but I mentioned you to my aunt today and she wants to go out to dinner, probably just to check you're not a serial killer or something. Would you be up for that sometime?"

Harley didn't respond for a few seconds. Out for dinner? With Peter's Aunt? Sounds perfect except that means he'll want to meet Harley's mom soon too and he isn't ready to show Peter that part of his life. Sure he'd mentioned it to Peter, and thanks to Abbie he probably knew way more than Harley would have lied, but meeting her and actually going to his house? That was something else all together. Even worse, his aunt could want to meet his mother. She'd probably ask about his father too, the polite conversation starter of "so what do your parents do for a living?"

"O-or not, if I'm over stepping" Peter stuttered. Shit, Harley should have known better than to eave him waiting for as long as he did. Peter was really easily worried that he was a burden, which Harley hated because it's likely that someone, at some point, made him feel like that.

"Sorry sweetheart," Harley said. "I just zoned out for a second" you need to answer the question, Keener "dinner sounds nice, any idea when?" what the fuck is wrong with you? He thought to himself. The plan was to gently say no.

"Sunday, maybe? May works late most weekdays" Pete suggested

"ouch, sorry Petey. Sunday's aren't great. I got church" he said, feeling way more guilty than he did relieved.

"you go to church?" Peter asked, sounding surprised. "I didn't know that"

"you sound shocked, Parker" he commented fondly, finding himself with a grin on his face once again.

"no it's not that, it's just that you've never mentioned it. I totally understand. We can sort something out for another time if you want?" Peter said.

"of course, Pete. listen, I've kept you up long enough. Why don't you get some sleep?" Harley suggested softly. As much as he was willing to listen to Peter's angel like voice all night, he really didn't want to be messing with the boy's sleep schedule.

"I'm not tired" Peter insisted, but then yawned completely disproving his point.

"Liar" Harley teased. "Here's me thinking you're a goody two-shoes"

"fine, you win" he admitted. "you should get some rest too, Goodnight Harls"

"Night Petey pie"

The next week when Harley visited Stark, Peter had a black eye that he had done a really bad job of hiding and something inside of Harley snapped, a feeling of rage and protectiveness he hadn't felt since some shitty kid on the school yard pushed Abbie over bubbling inside of him. What sort of a person could even consider hurting Peter? Beautiful, innocent, lovable Peter. It would literally be like hitting a puppy, he thought no one, no matter how cruel would want to hurt a puppy.

Peter sheepishly looked away from Harley's gaze when he realised what he was looking at. He'd already been given the whole "if someone's giving you trouble, you can tell me y'know" speech off of Tony, he didn't need to deal with the embarrassment all over again. However, Harley didn't give him the soft, patronizing "you're not alone" bullshit. Instead, he balled his hands into fists and had a look of absolute furiousness on his face.

"who did that to you?" Harley asked, no demanded to know, much harsher than he intended to. But he couldn't stand seeing Peter's bruised face any longer knowing that whoever did it probably got off scot-free. He couldn't describe the feeling with words, but he wanted to hurt whoever did that to his Peter. His Peter. Huh, that's probably not something he should make a habit of saying.

"Harls, it's nothing it's just,"

"That doesn't look like nothing, sweetheart. Who did it?" he asked again, softer this time. He moved closer to the boy, who looked way more frightened than Harley was okay with, and cupped his cheek lightly. They were free to do this without being teased, Abbie was in her room, unaware Harley had arrived yet, and Tony and Pepper were in the kitchen making dinner.

Peter leaned into his touch. "it was just a dumb fight at school, honestly it's fine"

Harley wasn't convinced. "did you hit him first?" he asked. Peter shook his head and whispered 'no'. "did you hit him back?"

Peter shook his head again. "well no but-" 

"then it wasn't a fight, sweetheart. That was him just hurting you which is why i need to know who he is"

Peter's eyes looked pretty glossy, and Harley immediately felt bad for pressuring him. He of all people should understand to leave something when the other person clearly doesn't want to talk about it. "sorry, Pete," he said gently, brushing his thumb along the boy's cheek. "I just- it's not my business I know. But god, doll seeing you marked up like this I- I care about you Peter and I hate seeing you hurt"

Peter smiled, lifting his hand up and placing it over Harley's. "it's okay Harley, honest. Thank you for caring though"

Harley smiled down at the boy and his gorgeous brown eyes with those long eyelashes that fluttered when Peter blinked up at him innocently, shyly even. "always Petey"

The sound of little, frantic footsteps filled his ears and the next thing Harley knew he had a small girl in his arms. She'd jumped up at him, throwing her small arms around his neck and clinging on until Harley wrapped his arms around her, keeping her steady. Her little legs wrapped around his waist and she intertwined her feet on his back, holding onto him like a koala bear. "hey kiddo" Harley greeted  holding her small frame closely. "how've you been?"

"good!" the girl beamed happily. "I missed you though"

Harley smiled. "I've missed you too, sweetheart"

Upon Pepper announcing that dinner was ready, the three of them gathered into the kitchen a took a seat in their usual places. No one mentioned Harley's home or Peter's eye; they were trying to keep the conversation as light hearted as possible. So instead they talked about their school lives, like a normal, completely functioning family. Harley found out that Peter was a part of a decathlon team and that their finals were coming up, and strangely he beamed with pride hearing how well his friend was doing at school. Unsurprisingly, Peter was a grade A student, with perfect attendance and won every science fair his high school had ever had. Not that Harley had expected any less of course, it came as no shock that Peter was a perfect student.

He shyly mentioned the A that he'd gotten on the algebra quiz they'd had the other day and Harley smiled at him fondly. "well done, buddy," he said, clapping a hand on his back. Peter blushed and ducked his head down to hide it, but Harley caught sight of it anyway. "thanks Harls," he replied sweetly.

Once dinner was finished with, Harley and Peter offered to do the dishes (Harley washing and Peter drying) whilst they chatted among themselves. Tony and Pepper went back through into the living area with Abbie and watched whatever show she was forcing them to sit through this time. It was so good of them to look after Abbie for the week, and make him dinner all of the damn time, so the least he could do was wash up afterwards.

"There's something i gotta show you," Peter announced after the last item was dried and put away. Harley wasn't sure whether Peter was excited or nervous (or both) but regardless he was incredibly curious as to what it was that Peter was talking about.

"sure," Harley replied coolly. "what is it?"

"let's go to the roof" Peter suggested.

The roof, the same roof that they had both truly connected on when they'd first met each other. The place that they would often retreat to, to talk or to sit in silence just enjoying one another's company, depending on their moods. Whenever they were on the roof of the Stark tower was when the tension between the two was at it's highest, yet it seemed when they were both the most calm and content. It was hard for him to explain, but all the bad thoughts Harley had seemed to melt away when he was around Peter, and were placed by the thoughts of how much he just wanted to hold him, protect him, hell he'd be lying if he said he didn't want to kiss his pretty pink lips. He wasn't sure what was stopping him, but he put it down to a mix of nerves and not wanting to lose the best friend he'd ever had. He could ignore some sexual tension if it meant he could keep his best friend forever.

When they got onto the roof, Peter looked more nervous than he did when he had suggested going up. Harley was more than confused. "so what did you wanna show me, Petey?" he asked, shoving his hands into his jean pockets because he wasn't really sure what else to do with them. Why did he become so fidgety when he was nervous? And when the hell did he become nervous in the first place? How come all of his confidence crumbled whenever he was around Peter- Harley was just thankful he could hide it well with a smirk and a pet name.

"Look, last week I learned something huge about you, something that you weren't ready for me to know and-" Peter paused and inhaled deeply. Harley assumed he was trying to calm his nerves. He wanted to hold the boys hand and soothe him like he usually would when the boy seemed anxious, but it didn't seem right to do it right now. "and i feel really bad about it." he finished.

"Peter, don't feel bad. It's not your fault Abbie said all that stuff-"

"hear me out, I still feel terrible. That's personal shit and you weren't ready for me to know yet, you should have been able to tell me about it in your own time when you wanted to. I just- now that I know something big about you, i think it's only fair I tell you something big about me too"

Harley felt guilty already and Peter hadn't even revealed this big secret yet. Did he really think that he had to share this with Harley? No, that's not what he wanted. Whatever this is seems huge to Peter and he wants to find out because Peter wants to tell him, not because he feels obliged to. "sweetheart you don't have to tell me anything, yeah? Last week was unfortunate but that doesn't mean we have to be even."

Peter shook his head firmly. "I trust you with my life Harley, I don't want to hide something like this from you." Was he doing the right thing? Would this put Harley in danger? He was bound to find out anyway right? He literally goes into Mr Stark's lab every week with him for hours, something would give eventually. Peter wanted Harley to trust him, he wanted their to be no secrets between them, Jesus he was pretty sure he liked Harley (and not in the way he liked MJ or Ned), he didn't want to risk him finding out another way and hating him for keeping it from him.

"It's- it's hard to explain. I mean, not really but you might not believe me, it's better if I show you" He stumbled like he usually did when he was anxious. Harley was becoming increasingly worried, what the hell could be so big that Peter couldn't use words to tell him? What if he was ill? Like really ill, or maybe he was moving to another country and Harley would never see him again? Or what if he got a girl pregnant and was gonna be a father in a few months? Shit, he just wished Peter would hurry up and spill before Harley thought of anymore worst case scenarios. Not that he's say that, he didn't want to stress Peter out.

Peter grabbed the hem of his own shirt and started to lift it, Harley's eyes went wide. He didn't know whether he should look away, or whether if he did he would miss what Peter was trying to show him. "P-Peter what- what are you doing?" Harley stammered awkwardly while Peter continued to remove his shirt, and he was surprised when he didn't see any flesh beneath it. No, he saw- he saw a suit, red and blue and it was- "holy shit" Harley said out loud. "you're- you're Spiderman?"

Peter shrugged awkwardly, a small smile on his face. "yeah" he breathed, like he was relieved he had finally told him. Amazed, Harley stepped closer to him.

"of course," He said, apparently just as breathless as Peter. "it all makes sense." Clearly Peter wasn't just an intern for Tony, and that explains how Spiderman's suit went from being what was essentially a onesie to as advanced as it was, how Spidey went from being a 'friendly neighbourhood Spiderman' to working with the avengers. How didn't Harley notice sooner?  
"Peter Parker," Harley said fondly. "leave some awesomeness for the rest of us, will ya? Brains, beauty and now i find out you're a literal superhero? God really did decide to make you perfect didn't he?"

As Harley expected, Peter turned as red as the suit he was wearing and tried to hide his face. "you gotta stop doing that gorgeous."

Peter looked confused. "huh?"

Smiling, Harley gently cupped the other boy's cheek. "gettin' all shy when you're given compliments. They're all true," he assured. Peter. Somehow, blushed harder.

"Harley, can- can i do something impulsive?" He asked in an unsure, timid voice.

"ain't that impulsive if you're asking me, sweetheart," Harley pointed out, making Peter chuckle lightly. Shit his laugh was nice; Harley could listen to it all day. 

"okay, true," Peter confirmed. "then can I do something that may or may not be insane?"

Grinning Harley replied "I'd expect no less from you, doll"

And then Peter closed the distance between them and pressed his lips against Harley's. Bewildered, Harley took a second or so to respond, but then he placed his hands on Peter's waist and pulled him even closer and kissed him back. It was sweet, almost innocent. Neither of them took it any further than an affectionate brush of their lips and neither intended to turn it into anything more than that. They were both more than content with sweet, meaningful innocence. Harley felt there was fireworks going off inside of his stomach. In all honesty he expected it to be himself working up the courage to kiss Peter, not the other way around. Yet the way Peter's lips moved delicately against his own made him very unlikely to care.

After a few seconds of absolute bliss, they pulled away from each other, a grin on both of their faces. "we, uh," Peter cleared his throat, face still as red as the suit he was wearing. He picked his hoodie up and pulled it back over his head, letting the hood stay up as if it would hide him away more. "we should head back down before Mr stark starts to wonder where we've gone"

"peter, your heart rate an breathing levels seemed to have elevated rapidly within the last few minutes. Would you like me to contact Mr Stark?" an female, AI voice chimed in. The look of panic that crossed Peter's face was absolutely adorable and Harley wished he could have taken a picture.

"no!" he squeaked in response, voice high pitched and filled with panic. "No Karen I'm fine don't- there's no need to tell Mr Stark" 

Laughing, Harley wrapped his arm around Peter's shoulder and started to walk with the startled boy. He really was something else, and Harley was positive that there is absolutely nothing he wouldn't do for the precious angel beside him. "so," he said slowly, teasingly, he southern accent more apparent that usual. "she gonna try n tell on us every time we do that or-?"

Giggling shyly, Peter's cheeks turned pink as he shook his head. "I don't think so."

Harley smiled down at the boy and ran his finger's through Peter's brown, messy curls. "good," he said firmly and planted another small kiss onto to Pete's warm, red cheek. He could get used to this.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> add me on tumblr: xyouxmewlingxquimx


	4. Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harley and Peter are ready to take their relationship to the next level, but FRIDAY has other ideas, which results in a very awkward conversation with Papa Stark. More importantly, Harley meets Ned and Mj

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Someone commented on the last chapter and said that Tony would probably program FRIDAY to be a cockblock to mess with his boys and honestly I loved it and couldn't help myself. Thanks Sp8cefluff for the idea lmao 
> 
> and huge thanks to Belladonna229 for helping me out in terms of cultural accuracy in the fic. I'm English and there's obviously a few cultural differences between the north of England and the south of America that she helped me out with.

They were going to tell Tony about, about whatever the thing going on between them was, but they never seemed to get the chance. After all, it wasn't something that Peter wanted to bring up by himself and Harley was only there once a week. When they were all together, it didn't seem like something to just bring up at the dinner table. While Harley did tell Tony a while back that he thought (knew) he was gay, he didn't even know if Peter had come out yet. Besides, they hadn't actually had the conversation about what they even were to each other yet. At the minute they were simply friends who, who held hands and cuddled and- made out from time to time. Nothing to report really.

Things seemed to be going well for Harley. His mother had agreed to get help after she realised that she was the reason Abbie didn't want to come home anymore. Never in his whole life had he seen anyone look so remorseful, but he quickly assured her that she could fix it by finally getting the help she needs. So, she said yes: she would do anything to keep her children even if she hadn't always been the best mother. It would take time, but she was making the effort and that's all anyone could ask for.

Tony had finally convinced him to get some therapy as well. It wasn't until he'd stopped being so busy with his mother that he realised how run down he was himself. If he had any reason to better himself, it was Peter. Gorgeous, gorgeous Peter Parker who was literally like an angel sent down from heaven for Harley. When he finally had the balls to ask him out properly, he wanted to be the best version of himself he could be. So, he accepted Stark's offer for a therapist.

It was helping to be fair, even if some days Harley didn't feel like talking about his problems at all, Doctor Thompson said he could talk about whatever he wanted, and said it would actually have a positive effect to talk about the good things. He would often talk about Peter in those sessions, and how incredible he was. He'd sometimes mention Tony and Pepper, and how much he loved having dinner over there's each Friday night. Finally he would talk about Abbie and how well she was doing at school and how proud of her he was. Sometimes, he would feel brave enough to talk about his mother's health and any improvements or set backs she was having. On certain days, usually bad ones, he would talk about his dad, but he didn't have one nice thing to say about that man.

Eventually, Tony had introduced him to Natasha Romanoff, an old friend of his who clearly meant a lot to him. Peter had already ben introduced to her in Germany when the Avengers had fought over the Sokovia Accords and split up. Her exterior was tough, almost cold but once she had really gotten to know Stark's pseudo kids she warmed up to them. Hell, she even liked them. Especially Abbie who upon knowing her for less than 30 seconds said 'you look like a princess Natasha!', Stark wished he had gotten the way she blushed and smiled at the girl on video; it was adorable.

He had also introduced them to Rhodey, who Harley found especially easy to get along with because they could team up and against Tony and wind him up. Everyone could vividly remember Stark's pouty face while they shared embarrassing stories about the mechanic. Tony would look to Peter and Pepper for back up but the two would just giggle at how serious he looked. 

It seemed the boys couldn't keep up their 'just friends' act for very long, all thanks to Karen and FRIDAY collectively making it difficult for them to do anything remotely relationship-y without innocently threatening to inform Stark. They were in Peter's room in the tower at the time watching The Empire Strikes Back when it happened. They lay on the bed, Peter head on Harley's chest and Harley's arms wrapped protectively around the younger boy, their legs lazily intertwined.

He felt so lucky, what did he ever do to have such a beautiful boy in his arms? Harley had never been in love so he didn't know what to compare this to, but he had the feeling this was it. There's nothing in the world he wouldn't do for Peter. No mountain he wouldn't climb, no sea he wouldn't cross to please the boy. It felt like he couldn't breathe when he was without him, like if something ever happened to him Harley's whole world would collapse. Suddenly, he understood the beauty of every romance movie he'd watched with Pepper, the meaning of every love song ever written and the fuss about being in a relationship. Yeah, he was probably in love.

He gently pressed his lips against Peter's forehead. It was soft, loving. The younger boy turned his head and looked up at Harley with an adorable smile on his face, moving his body a little further towards the top of the bed so that his lips could reach Harley's easier. Kissing Harley was something he would never tire of. The gentle, caring way he caressed his jaw as their mouths moved together made his heart flutter and his legs weak. He felt Harley's soft tongue swipe his lower lip as he gently laced his fingers through Peter's curls.

The blonde boy sat up properly and pulled Peter onto his lap, making him whine beautifully before attaching their lips once again. Bringing their bodies closer together, Peter wrapped his arms around Harley's neck. The younger boy whimpered ever so slightly and involuntarily moved his hips against Harley's as they deepened the kiss. The simple movement had both the boys moaning against each other and wanting more, and Harley had just removed Peter's shirt when Stark burst into the room.

Peter gasped and removed himself from Harley's lap, his eyes wide like a deer caught in headlights and his cheeks rosy with embarrassment. It seems FRIDAY didn't feel the need to ask the boys whether they her to 'inform boss' about their increased breathing and pulse levels. Tony stood speechless. Trying to find words to say but he seemed to have none. After a few moments, he blinked and said "Pete, put your shirt back on. Meet me downstairs in a few...i think we all need to talk"

He didn't seem angry or even annoyed, just surprised. As embarrassed as they both were, they saw that as a good sign. Mumbling something about "stupid technology", Peter threw on his shirt and made his way towards the door. He seemed anxious, so Harley grabbed his hand gently as they made their way passed Pepper and Abbie in the living room and met Tony in the kitchen, who had made himself and Harley a coffee and a hot chocolate for Peter.

"so, looks like we need a catch up right boys?" Tony said cheerfully, a smirk playing on his lips. "how long has this been going on for?"

"Not long Mr Stark, only a few weeks," Peter stammered. "I-sorry we didn't tell you sooner it was just that"

"Pete, kid, take it easy. It's okay I'm not mad" Tony assured him quickly. Peter seemed to release a very quiet breath of relief at his words and gripped Harley's hand a little tighter. "you aren't?" he asked.

Stark smiled and shook his head. "FRIDAY told me that you were showing signs of being in deep emotional distress, if anything it was a relief to see that you were both okay." Even Harley blushed at that one. Tony had gone in expecting them to be in some sort of danger and had actually found them mid make out sesh, as funny as that was he couldn't help but be at least a little bit flustered over it.

"Sorry for scaring you, Mr Stark," Peter said, cheeks still rosy and pink lips still swollen. "Let's go finish the movie Harley."

The boys left the kitchen and returned to Peter's room in an attempt to finish the movie, but they were both so restless and still kind of embarrassed so couldn't concentrate. Whatever was happening to Luke Skywalker seemed irrelevant, even to the two massive nerds because of the sexual tension still in the room. Damn you old man, Harley found himself thinking.

"you alright, darlin?" Harley asked gently. He knew Peter was more sensitive than him, more anxious, and wanted to make sure he was okay. Moving closer to the older boy, Peter nodded. Once again, Harley wrapped his arm around him and pulled him close. "I'm okay, Harls" he assured, laying his head on Harley's shoulder. "at least now we don't have to hide this from him. I'm glad he knows."

Harley smiled, he was glad the feeling wasn't one sided. Peter wanted to be with Harley, was okay with people knowing about them, whatever they were. The thought filled Harley with so much happiness; he felt so loved. Absolutely nothing could beat the feeling of being loved by Peter, he was sure of it.

***

That is why it hurt so much a few weeks later when Peter turned up late to dinner, batter and bruised as going on patrol. Harley rushed to his side immediately and helped the boy into the kitchen. He looked a mess, yet no less beautiful than usual. He had a dark purple bruise just above his cheek and a bust lip. His messy hair fell in front of his tired eyes and he stumbled as he walked. "Pete? What happened darlin?" he asked, voice laced with worry.

"I-i thought i could do it on my own but- there was too many of them and i" Peter was rambling breathlessly and Harley was worried that if he continued he would end up completely freaking out. He placed his hands on the sides of the younger boy's arms, grounding him and trying to keep him stable until he caught his breath, but Peter kept anxiously mumbling half sentences and occasionally muttering "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry" over and over again. Harley moved his right hand and lifted Peter's chin up ever so slightly so their eyes met.

"Shh, darlin. It's okay" he assured softly, now running his hand through Peter's hair. "i need you to slow down, yeah?"

Peter nodded.

"Breathe with me sweetheart. Nice and slow" he said calmly. If Peter carried on the way he was he would end up hyperventilating, and then it would be so much harder to bring him back down to earth. Yet even as Peter breathed slowly, in and out in sync with Harley who was still holding him tightly, he was still shaking and wincing slightly like he was in major discomfort.

"what is it baby?" Harley asked. Peter shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut and running his hand through his own hair, only to begin tugging on it as his breathing started to increase and become erratic again.  "shh no come on" he said gently, pulling Peter's hands away from his head and lacing their fingers together. Partly to ground Peter, partly to prevent him from hurting himself. "How can i help darlin? Tell me what to do"

Peter kept his eyes closed and shook his head again. To be fair to him, Harley was doing an excellent job at remaining calm even though he was majorly freaking out on the inside. Sure, he helped Peter deal with his anxiety in the past but never a panic attack this extreme. Poor Peter could barely form words. He was just crying and shaking and muttering nonsense to himself. Should he go get Tony? He was too scared to leave Peter by himself and he knew yelling would only freak the boy out more.

"you're safe, Peter," Harley promised. His voice was firm but kind. "I've got you sweetheart nothing can hurt you"

Frantically shaking his head, Peter crossed his arms over his chest and muttered "too loud, too much"

Harley had no idea what to do. What did Peter even mean? How could it be too loud? The only noise in the room was his own soft whispering and Peter's heavy breathing and spluttering. He wanted to help so badly but didn't know how; he felt so useless.

Peter still hadn't opened his eyes, was it too bright for him? Harley wasn't sure but it was a possibility. "FRIDAY" he requested softly, his voice quiet so he didn't scare Peter. "dim the lights."

The room went considerably darker than before and after a few seconds Peter started to open his eyes. Sighing with relief, Harley watched as the brunette blinked a few times and took in his surroundings. "Harley?" he asked, his tiny voice cracking. Still worried about startling the boy, Harley nodded and smiled reassuringly at him. He was so relieved that at the very least, Peter seemed to know where he was now. Less than a minute ago it seemed like Peter had zoned out of reality completely and had no idea of what was going on, other than the fact he was frightened.

"yeah it's me, sweetheart" he said, pulling the boy into his arms. "I'm here"

It turns out Peter struggled with keeping his senses at a normal level because of the spider bite, and sometimes (like just then) things got a little too much for him. Stark made sure to install the 'overload protocol' right away, to make things easier for Peter during an episode. Any electronics making sound would be turned off in that room, and for extra protection Tony made him some noise cancelling headphones that worked with his heightened sense of hearing. The lights would be dimmed by at least 50%, maybe more if Peter needed it and FRIDAY would prevent others from entering the room Peter was in at the time.

***

Peter introduced Harley to his friends properly for the first time since they'd started dating. Ned, Peter's best friend was kind and enthusiastic about their relationship. He seemed genuinely interested in Harley's life and how he met Peter, what his hobbies were and where he lived.  Once he found out that Harley was from Tennessee he started asking a bunch of ridiculous questions, but Harley didn't mind because his light hearted banter was refreshing.

"do y'all really say y'all all the time?"

"Ned," Peter sighed, trying to shut his friend up.

"okay, okay but do you wear cowboy hats?"

"Only on weekends" Harley replied, and then sent Ned a huge grin.

"oh okay" Ned nodded. "wait, it's Saturday. Where's your hat?"

Peter held his head in his hands, bewildered by Ned's inability to detect such obvious sarcasm.

"he was joking, nerd," Mj butted in, speaking in front of Harley for the first time. Peter had told him before hand that Michelle could be a little abrasive, intimidating was the word that Peter meant but never said. Yet Harley smiled brightly at her and shook his head fondly when Ned utter an 'ooh'

"I'm so sorry you have to deal with these losers" she commented. Had Harley not had the warning on how the way Mj acted before hand, he may have accidently started a fight. Ok, so he was a little over protective of Peter. Shoot him. He just didn't want anyone insulting Peter, that is completely normal boyfriend behaviour. However he knew that harsh comments was usually Michelle's way of actually getting on with someone, so he just chuckled and said "they're your friends too MJ"

Michelle shrugged absent mindedly and took a sip of the drink in front of her.

"hey Harley, is it true you guys deep fry everything?"

Peter groaned. Michelle smirked. Harley laughed and responded "not everythin', where the hell did ya even hear that from?"

Shrugging, Ned replied "movies i guess. Do you have a gun?"

"ask me one more question dude and I'll show ya" Harley said, a little more seriously than he meant it. Of course Harley didn't have a gun, that was ridiculous. A potato gun? Sure, but he wasn't about to bring that up. He caught sight of Ned's concerned face and patted him and the back. "m' joking man, chill out"

"right. Yeah. So how did you meet Tony Stark?" he asked, probably changing the subject. Ah, it seems Harley had no choice but to bring the potato gun up after all. Peter must have caught the look on his face because he giggled (Jesus fucking Christ he was adorable) and nudged Harley playfully.

"yeah Harls, how did you meet Mr Stark?" he teased, smiling brightly.

"you really gonna do this sweetheart?" Harley asked, wrapping one arm around the boy's shoulders and using his other hand to tickle his ribs. Peter began to squeal with laughter, and wiggled and writhed around his Harley's arms. They both knew that Peter could easily use his super strength to break free if he really wanted to, so there's no way he could pretend he didn't love it. He giggled and giggled until eventually, he breathless panted 'stop, stop that's enough' and Harley stopped immediately, letting him snuggle up again his side with an arm still securely around the young spider's shoulders.

"you guys are disgustingly cute" Mj commented, making Peter blush. For a second he forgot they had an audience, but that was okay. Peter's friend's seemed nice, even if one was a little over enthusiastic and the other literally the opposite. They were good people, people that Peter cared a lot about. that was good enough for Harley. 


	5. five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> it's Harley's birthday!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey, I'm so sorry it's been forever since the last update. my mental health is particularly shitty right now and I haven't had the time or energy to write a lot. however I start college next week so hopefully, that will give me some sort of routine.

On Harley's 17th birthday, Tony gave him a car. It wasn't anything too modern or flash, because if it were Harley probably wouldn't like it, but it meant a lot to him. The two had spent the last year or so fixing it up and Tony found it fitting that Harley would keep it when he was old enough.

 

Now, neither of them were particularly sappy people, which is why their appreciation and respect for each their often went unspoken, even though it was definitely there. That's just how they worked, it was their dynamic. Words and gestures weren't necessary because they knew they loved each other without those things. It was obvious through the little things they knew about it each other. The way that Tony could read Harley like a book while most people found the teen unreadable. It was clear from the way that Harley knew exactly when Tony was having a down day and how to help. They could tell because of the way that Tony knew Harley better than anyone else, and from the even smaller things like how Harley knew _exactly_ how Tony liked his coffee.

 

So maybe Harley showed his love for Stark through sarcasm and playful insults. Maybe Tony could never _truly_ find the words to tell his pseudo son exactly how much he means to him, so he tried to use gifts as a substitute. None of those things mattered. They were a team, always had been since Harley was 11 years old. Stark had been there for him through everything, and Harley probably saved the mechanic's life. They didn't need to repay each other, but they'd never stop trying to.

 

Stark wanted to throw Harley a huge party. Subconsciously, he figured that the bigger and more expensive it was, the easier he could show Harley how much he valued the kid. It wasn't until Pepper pointed out that huge crowds, loud music and the faces of people he didn't know was not Keener's style at all that Tony realised he was being an idiot.

 

So instead, Peter had suggested a small gathering of Harley's favourite people. Something small, nothing too flashy or overwhelming. They'd collectively agreed that Pepper should e the one to organise it because if Tony did it would inevitably turn into a famous Stark Party filled with posh people and alcohol. They wanted to avoid that at all costs because today should be about what Harley would like.

 

Peter had taken him out for a meal during the day to stall some time for Pepper to get everything prepared. She had invited Harley's mother to come up and spend the weekend at the Stark tower so that they could all celebrate together and was delighted when she agreed. Ned and Mj were invited too, and Ned requested to bring his girlfriend Betty. Natasha and Rhodey had confirmed their invites too.

 

When Harley's mother had arrived at the Stark tower, she was nothing like how Pepper had imagined her to be. Call her judgemental, but from the way that Abbie had kicked off about going home, and the way Harley was clearly struggling to keep the family together, Pepper didn't expect Ellen Keener to be so sweet. After talking to the woman for a short while, and partaking in general gossip as they set up party decorations, Pepper discovered that she had a lot in common with Harley's mother and that at the end of the day, she was just a struggling single mother suffering from mental health problems. She made a mental note to talk to Tony about sorting something out for her later.

 

"Miss Potts, I can't tell ya how much I appreciate everythin' you do for my kids, " she said out of the blue. Pure emotion laced her voice as she spoke, and Pepper's heart broke as a result. Previously, she hadn't expected to get on with Mrs Keener, but now she yearned to do anything to help her. "I know Harley ain't had it easy, but working with your husband does make him genuinely happy, 'nd Abbie talks about you all the damn time"

 

Pepper couldn't help but notice the sadness that laced her voice as she spoke. It was as if she was jealous of the connection that Pepper had with the Keener's, like deep down she longed to be a good mother. "It's no problem at all, we love having them here. How long are you planning on staying in New York?" she asked casually.

 

Ellen shrugged and bit her bottom lip, something Harley often did. "Only the day I reckon," she replied, giving no explanation or justification to her answer. Pepper figured she probably couldn't afford a hotel, but she would never suggest that to the woman before her. She knew things weren't easy for the Keener family, it was obvious from knowing Harley and Abbie all these years, even if neither of them actually said much about life back in Rosehill.

 

"why don't you stay a few days?" Pepper suggested. "we have space, and Harley thinks the world of you. I think it would mean a lot to him"

 

Ellen hesitated, but then something caught her eye. Abbie was sat at the kitchen table with Tony, going over some of her homework. It looked so domestic like they were father and daughter or at least related somehow. She couldn't help but smile, happy that her children had at least grown up with a father figure, one that clearly cared about them a lot more than their real father did. She smiled and nodded at Pepper, a grateful look in her eyes. "Thank you, Miss Potts," she answered.

 

***

 

"Happy Birthday," Peter smiled, handing Harley a small package. He was so excited and nervous at the same time for Harley to open his gift. He'd tried to make everything as special as possible. He took Harley to his favourite food place that _wasn't_ Burger King and was, y'know, an actual restaurant. He had already booked and ordered Harley's favourite meal for by the time they got there (arriving in Harley's new car, of course), he'd bought Harley flowers and made him pancakes for breakfast, anything really to make today as special for him as possible.

 

"Darlin' ya didn't have to get me anything," Harley said, graciously accepting the little black box. He carefully undid the neat white bow on the lid and opened it gently with trembling hands. It almost seemed wrong to him, to hold something so delicate and beautiful in his rough, calloused hands that were often more dirty than they were clean, his nails usually bitten down to the nub. It was as if he was undeserving of something so pretty like the simple black box was in the wrong hands. Or maybe he just felt unworthy of Peter's love and affection all together, like the younger boy's _heart,_ was in the wrong hands. Still, Harley opened the lid and his eyes widened at what was inside.

 

A ring.

 

It was simple but beautiful. A regular silver band with a _P_ engraved on the inside. It was lovely and Harley felt tears welling up as he looked at the piece of jewellery. "Petey," he whispered as he carefully picked it up to inspect it further. He looked at Peter, who was smiling with rosy cheeks. "It's a promise ring," he explained, his tone just slightly nervous.  "I know it might be a little early but, we've been together a few months now and I wanted this day to be special. I have one too,"

 

He pulled another silver band out of his jeans pocket, but this one was thinner and daintier. He showed it to Harley proudly and he noticed that engraved on the inside of Peter's ring was the letter _H._ Harley's heart swelled and his smile reached his eyes.

 

"These are absolutely beautiful, sweetheart," he said, hoping his voice didn't sound too weak. Truth be told, Harley had never been happier. Peter Parker was like a breath of fresh air in his life that was usually enveloped with smoke and pollution. Peter was the one thing that Harley could just have without any consequences. He truly was Harley's whole world.

 

"care to do the honours gorgeous?" he smirked, handing Peter the ring. The younger boy nodded and carefully slipped the ring onto Harley's finger, smiling at the perfect fit. Harley then did the same for Peter, and the boys stared at each other lovingly, grins on their faces as they giggled like teenage girls. God, Harley was so in love.

 

"I can't wait to show you your surprise," Peter practically giggled. Harley furrowed his brows.

 

"There's another surprise?" he asked, genuinely surprised. He never cared all that much about his birthday, and while his mom would always try her hardest to give him the best day possible, this was the first year he felt truly spoiled. Not that he minded, things didn't really feel the same after his dad left anyway, and Harley's birthday was simply another opportunity for him to get in touch, but to choose not to.

 

"Of course there is!" Peter exclaimed like it was obvious. "I want this to be the greatest day ever for you. You deserve it,"

 

Harley smiled and began fiddling with the band that sat comfortably on his left ring finger, a heart full of happiness as he touched the precious gift. "Well this is the first birthday I've had since I was six I haven't spent the day wondering if my dad will bother to show, so it's already been incredible sweetheart," he admitted, truly meaning it to sound sweet. He just wanted Peter to know that he appreciated everything he'd done for him today, but the sad expression on the younger boy's face made it clear he'd chosen his words wrong.

 

"He doesn't deserve you," Peter said firmly, frowning at the unconvinced look on Harley's face. "He doesn't," he repeated, softer this time as he placed his hand on top of Harley's.

 

The blonde nodded sadly and sent Peter a half-smile. "It's alright, Darlin. It doesn't bother me anymore" he lied, and Peter knew it wasn't true. It was obvious, but Peter didn't push the subject further and ruin Harley's day. He'd try and bring it up another time though.

 

"Come on," Peter said more cheerfully. "Let's go home, your surprise should be ready"

 

Before Harley could process what he'd said, Peter had grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him out of the restaurant.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you want some end game or far from home related angst read my one-shot https://archiveofourown.org/works/20196049  
> or my ongoing parkner story set after far from home https://archiveofourown.org/works/19832113


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